Nothing Phone (2) to Feature This Snapdragon 8 Series SoC, Qualcomm Executive Confirms

As Nothing gears up to launch its second generation TWS earbuds called the Nothing Ear (2), one of its best-kept secrets has been revealed.

We know that Nothing is working on its first flagship smartphone, as revealed during the Mobile World Congress. Now, amidst the hype train for its upcoming Earbuds, a Qualcomm executive has accidentally spilled the beans on how powerful the flagship smartphone will be.

Nothing Phone (2) Key Specifications Confirmed

The Nothing Phone (2) is confirmed to run on a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 series processor. It was announced at the Qualcomm booth at MWC Barcelona by Qualcomm President Cristiano Amon and Nothing founder Carl Pei. But more details about the processor were kept under wraps.

However, thanks to a now-deleted LinkedIn post by Qualcomm's SVP and GM of Mobile, Compute, and XR business, Alex Katouzian, we know which processor will power the Nothing Phone (2).

Katouzian posted on LinkedIn congratulating Carl Pei and the Nothing team on the launch of the upcoming smartphone, revealing the smartphone will be powered by the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1. The post was taken down minutes after. But by then, the damage was already done.

After days of speculation about whether Nothing will be able to secure a large enough batch of the sought-after Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, it is confirmed that the company would rather take the safer route and pick the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1, which is now a year old but still quite powerful.

Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1: Still Worth it?

Despite being a generation old, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC has powered some of the best smartphones. As the name suggests, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 is the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 with a higher-clocked prime core.

Qualcomm has also improved its power efficiency in the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC, and as per multiple reviews of smartphones powered by the chipset, it no longer faces extreme heating issues like its predecessor.

As a result, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 is a safer option. It balances high performance with power efficiency to deliver flagship experiences on the Android platform.

However, the clock is ticking on Nothing. If the Nothing Phone (2) launches in the second half of 2023, Qualcomm could already be out with the binned version of the current flagship chipset, with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1's rapidly aging.

That said, Nothing has already proved its mettle with the Nothing Phone(1), which has sold over 650,000 units to date. The company is now aiming for the high-end segment with its second smartphone and planning a foray into the US market.

The company is also working on more customizations in the software to give the smartphone its unique flavor.